DAY TO NIGHT Extend the hours of activity along Water Street GOUVERNEUR LANE OBJECTIVES 1. Program open spaces with regular and seasonal events and public art 2. Illuminate pedestrian space and building facades 3. Provide publicly accessible Wi-Fi and other information technology Changes on Water Street should cultivate street life that extends beyond peak commuting hours. The re-envisioned street and plazas will offer a stage to extend activity into the evening, through the weekend and across the seasons. By generating new activity and building on the improvements being made in the surrounding areas, a coordinated framework for art and events will extend the presence of people, enhance the value of open space and reposition the role of Water Street in Lower Manhattan. EXISTING STREET ACTIVITY Activity on Water Street is dominated by office workers during commuting hours and at lunchtime on weekdays. The busiest intersections during rush hour are at the most convenient access points for public transportation: Fulton, Wall, Broad, and Whitehall streets, with up to 2,000 pedestrians crossing Water Street in one direction in an hour at Clockwise from top left: Sidewalk and POPS in front of 88 Pine; Public art in POPS at 88 Pine; Blank wall and parking garage at Water Street and Pine Street; Arcade at Hanover Square obscuring retail each intersection. Alliance for Downtown New York 41 During warmer months, office workers venture to public spaces and sidewalks where street vendors are set up. People gather outside to eat or socialize, whether on nearby benches or in those public plazas with ample sun, minimal wind, and vegetation, such as Old Slip and 100 Wall Street. Some retail spaces have outdoor cafes that are also busy at lunch time. But weekday pedestrians typically avoid many of the open spaces and sidewalks of Water Street because there is not much to see or do there. And, despite destinations such as South Street GOUVERNEURGGOU LANE Seaport, Battery Park and ferries to Staten Island OUVERNEUR LANE and Governors Island at either end, there is little E weekend activity on Water Street. Pedestrian counts show no more than a dozen people walking the length at any given time. Vehicle traffic is also much lighter on weekends, with only three to four cars lined up at red lights. PROGRAMMING Coupled with physical changes, intensive Heavy rush hour pedestrian traffic programming would contribute to making Water Street a more lively place. A varied mix of events Lunch time clusters will leverage the diverse range of large and small spaces on Water Street, while seeking to capture Minimal activity throughout the day the attention of workers, residents and visitors alike. Along with the reconfigured street, the public While areas in the sun are busy during lunchtime, many of the Street’s public spaces remain desolate throughout the day realm of plazas and arcades could create a vibrant and engaging environment, building a meaningful connection to people and place, while extending Intensive programming would activity well into the evening, through the weekend and across the seasons. contribute to making Water Street a more lively and engaging place. 42 Water Street Vision Plan Outdoor public performance at Lincoln Center Peter Minuit Plaza Daily and Nightly Activities Street-Wide Events Large Events Placemaking Markets Water Street can be activated through a rhythm of programmed events and markets in public spaces along the corridor Community Planting Day at Mannahatta Park Midsummer Night Swing at Damrosch Park Holiday Festival at Saks Fifth Avenue River to River concert at Castle Clinton Alliance for Downtown New York 43 Performance and Events: Outdoor concerts, shows and exhibitions are a Lower Manhattan tradition. The annual River to River Festival and predecessor events draw people to venues throughout the district, including the Elevated Acre at 55 Water Street, home to an outdoor movie series. Water Street’s many empty plazas present staging opportunities for more festival programming. Markets: Temporary green market installations create a reason for people to gather, and foster the mixing of diverse groups. With a strong history of regular markets at Bowling Green, Zuccotti Park, and the recent additions of the Fulton Stall and New Amsterdam Markets in the Seaport, Lower Manhattan has proven to be a successful destination in the citywide trend. With low start- up costs and mobile infrastructure, markets could be deployed to solidify the urban life of key spaces along Water Street. Supported by a dense mix of workers and residents, the most viable locations for additional markets are the parks at Wall Street, Old Slip and Coenties Slip, all of which connect pedestrians moving between Water Street and the historic Financial District. An expanded Mannahatta Park could serve as a new destination green market at the heart of the district. Placemaking: Colorful arrangements of tables, chairs, umbrellas, portable landscaping, flowers, banners, and kiosks could create comfortable places for daily relaxation and social life. Recurring patterns of these elements could serve to link the various parks and plazas of Water Street, encouraging pedestrians to extend their journey. Temporary installations and special events can draw people to inhabit and appreciate spaces in new and surprising ways. Top: Regular events, such as Movie Nights at the Elevated Acre or the New Amsterdam Market can bring new life to Water Street; Bottom: A giant chess game has become a placemaking anchor at a park in Switzerland 44 Water Street Vision Plan PUBLIC ART Iconic Art: From grand gestures to subtle surprises, public art is an essential tool in creating compelling and memorable experiences on Water Street. Installations on Water Street are memorable but they lack a meaningful and defining link. To achieve this, the new landscaped median could become the site of distinctive permanent art. New sites for public art should be identified wherever possible in the redesign and modification of existing plazas and building arcades. Iconic installations would draw people Iconic Art along the street and announce the importance The Screen of Water Street as a premier commercial Temporary Art boulevard. Key intersections at Fulton, Wall and Threads Whitehall streets could provide ideal locations for noteworthy works to signify gateways onto and Functional Art through Water Street. Curated art in public spaces, including the median, will help create a compelling identity for Water Street Left to right: ‘Play Me I’m Yours’ creates a thread of serendipitous performance in London; Iconic art at 7 World Trade Center New York City, Balloon Flower by Jeff Koons; New York Avenue median, Washington D.C., Nana on a Dolphin by Niki de Saint Phalle Alliance for Downtown New York 45 Temporary art: Deployment of temporary installations on Water Street would ensure that From grand the corridor remains fresh and relevant. Building setbacks, arcades and plazas could become gestures to subtle sites for a renewed experience ranging from contemplative to dynamic and engaging. A vibrant surprises, public community of arts and cultural organizations have long ensured that Lower Manhattan is a nexus of art is an essential captivating, premier visual and performance art. tool in defining a Building on a long history of temporary art in Lower Manhattan, the Downtown Alliance continues compelling identity to apply it’s own program of Re:Construction, a public art program made possible by the Lower for Water Street. Manhattan Development Corporation. Similarly, on Water Street, designated sites in building arcades and plazas can take the form of a curated thread of rotating works executed in partnership with public agencies and private property owners. Functional art: Contemporary streetscape embraces contributions from a wide range of disciplines including furniture design, environmental signage, and sustainable design. When implementing open space modifications, private owners can incorporate creative and functional street furniture into the redesigned public realm. Addition of tables, chairs, umbrellas, portable landscaping, flowers, banners, and kiosks will serve to link the various parks and plazas visually, encouraging pedestrians to extend their journey another block along the street. Temporary installations can be used to recast sites as canvasses for innovative public art. Top to bottom: Port Sunlight at Lever House by Richard Woods; Walking Men 99 at 99 Church Street by Maya Barkai 46 Water Street Vision Plan Threads are multi-part art works that could create a narrative along all or parts of Water Street, leading visitors on an adventure “We are attracted to the best streets not because we have to go there but because we want to be there. The best are as joyful as they are utilitarian.” - Allan Jacobs, Great Streets Public art can be functional, serving to animate public plazas and Top: Iconic art contributes to a street’s identity, Jaume arcades. Top: Street furniture by Zaha Hadid; Bottom: Floating on Plensa’s Talking Continents, Jacksonville; a New York Sidewalk, subway map by Francoise Schein Bottom: Mark di Suvero’s Joie de Vivre in Zuccotti Park Alliance for Downtown New York 47 LIGHTING Pedestrian Lighting: Lighting contributes to an exciting urban environment by extending the life of a street beyond work hours. All too often, however, city streets are lit for the benefit of motorists while ignoring the sidewalk. Appropriate design and application of lighting can help to privilege the scale and experience of pedestrians. Effective lighting should provide an attractive pathway for pedestrians moving east and west along established commuter pathways, while also drawing visitors through the district along Water Street. Pedestrian-scaled lighting would reinforce connections and the identity of Water Street, enabling visitors to recognize and appreciate their experience of the street. Small fixtures placed in tree pits could create a soft glow bouncing off of the street trees and landscape. Lighting in the proposed median would further complement the sidewalk treatment reinforcing the identity of a reconfigured commercial boulevard at night.